REITs have brought a sizable portion of CRE assets into public hands

The initial REIT legislation was a milestone, says Morris Kramer, a partner with Roberts & Holland in New York. But in many ways, there have been other milestones that have propelled REITs even further. "The initial REIT rules imposed some very substantial restrictions on management, services and the like," he said. Later amendments, such as the one that enabled corporations to be REITs and the elimination of the prohibition against holding dealer property, were also important. The upshot is that today, REITs have significantly changed the industry by bringing a sizable portion of commercial real estate assets into public hands.